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| Sketchbook pages ©2021LisaLeQuelenec |
You cannot come to Bournemouth beach and fail to miss the groynes that march down the sand into the sea from Poole to Hengistbury Head there are 50-odd of them all protecting the beach from being washed away from the tide. They are part of the beach furniture here as much as sand and gulls. They are in sketchbook upon sketchbook of beach doodles I have filled since I moved here more than twenty years ago - so familiar are they that after a while they become easy to overlook.
It is a constant job for the Council to replace them which they do in sections working year on year. As a tot my son spent many a happy afternoon, from a safe distance, watching the diggers, dump trucks and cranes as they got to work removing and replacing. Once work is finished for the day and the light has become a little more exciting there were opportunities for some interesting sketching and photographing for me. I found the shadows fascinating.
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| Groynes at Bournemouth ©22021LisaLeQuelenec |
They have inspired a few series of work being rather convienent ways of introducing verticals in otherwise horizontal seascapes. A large series that kind of morphs every now and then to pop it's head up is one that I think of as 'Stripes on the Shoreline' - fairly recently in monoprints which you can read about here before that in a set of 28 small mixed media collages. It has surfaced again briefly in a collagraph with some rather unexpected results...
I made two collagraph plates using some cardboard as a base and added acrylic mediums and carborundum powder. I incised lines first using a biro then overworking with a blade being careful not to cut all the way through - I wanted an element of drypoint to the prints. Finally they were finished with a dilute layer of acrylic medium to seal them.
Below on the left is one of the prints taken by inking up the plate in the usual fashion. The carborundum holds copious amounts of ink and is difficult to wipe making holes very quickly in the scrim I use to wipe the plate. As there was so much ink on the print and on a whim remembering Henry Tonks* I ran the print through the press again but this time with a piece of clean damp paper covering it. The result, on the right, is a second print in reverse which whilst very different in mood to the original I also thought was a pleasing image.
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| Sentries collagraph 14x20.5cm ©2021LisaLeQuelenec |
The process didn't work consistantly each time and I have some interesting misprints that I will use for further explorations and sketchbook work but there are three prints and three 'tonks' are available as an edition of Sentries and Sentries II and are available both on Folksy and Etsy.
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| Sentries II collagraph 14x20.5cm ©2021LisaLeQuelenec |
*Henry Tonks - 1862 - 1937 a teacher at the Slade School of Art who used to press newsprint on to sections of paintings to remove excessive oil paint from the surface so as to be able to continue to work without having to wait so long for it to dry. The method is known as 'tonking'
3 comments:
Lisa I like the reverse prints as much as I do the original. I can see why the seas would inspire you. What a special place to live for twenty years. Hope you and yours are staying safe and well. Hugs!
I like the look of these - have never seen groynes around the beaches I visit but maybe the tides are not as changeable and fierce as they can be in the UK. There is something so interesting and mysterious about shadow shapes of all kinds, isn’t there? And I learned something new today - tonking - but I can’t promise I will remember it! ha ha.
Thank you so much Debbie, I really am so lucky to live here betwixt the sea and the New Forest. It feels like everything on our doorstep and a good range of habitat for bird and wildlife watching.
We are heading back into restrictions again as Omicron has reared its head and Delta is still with us. Once school is out I am hoping that a two week break will help. So far we have managed to dodge it so will keep our fingers crossed. Best wishes to you and your family for a safe and healthy time. Best wishes.
Hi Rhonda, if we didn't have the groynes we wouldn't have a beach as the tide washes away all the sand. In many ways it really is a manmade beach.
The low sun at the moment makes me notice shadows everywhere, I think it might be a Christmas wind down project to just draw the shadows of things and see what comes of it. It'll keep me out of mischief if nothing else ;o) I have been loving the Christmas cards and so pleased you are managing to get to your workroom again. Best wishes for your continuing speedy recovery.
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